Intertwined Paths
by Theodis
Summary: What if Edward never returned after Bella's disastrous birthday party? What if Bella decide to live with her mother after her heartbreaking experience? After nearly a decade of separation has passed, Edward and Bella's paths cross again.
1. Prologue

(AN: I'm starting off with the scene in New Moon where Edward tells Bella good-bye for the last time. So the first few paragraphs are not my words. Well actually half it might not be mine but I really needed the scene to start it off. I just might cut out the unnecessary paragraphs. And I'm sorry this is really short extremely short but this is the prologue so yeah.*shrugs unperturbed by the hateful glares I might be receiving*)

I do not own Twilight.

Last Goodbye

"… You can have my soul. I don't want it without you-it's yours already!"

He took a deep breath and stared, unseeingly, at the ground for a long moment. His mouth twisted the tiniest bit. When he finally looked up, his eyes were different; harder-like the liquid gold had frozen solid.

"Bella, I don't want you to come with me." He spoke the words slowly and precisely, his cold eyes on my face, watching as I absorbed what he was really saying.

There was a pause as I repeated the words in my head a few times, sifting through them for their real intent.

"You…don't…want me?" I tried out the words, confused by the way they sounded, placed in that order.

"No."

I stared, uncomprehending, into his eyes. He stared back without apology. His eyes were like topaz-hard and clear and very deep. I felt like I could see into them for miles and miles, yet nowhere in their bottomless depths could I see a contradiction to the word he'd spoken.

He smiled gently. "Don't worry. You're human-your memory is no more than a sieve. Time heals all wounds for your kind."

"And your memories?" I asked. It sounded like there was something stuck in my throat, like I was choking.

"Well"-he hesitated for a short second-"I won't forget. But my kind…we're easily distracted." He smiled; the smile was tranquil and it did not touch his eyes.

He took a step away from me. "That's everything, I suppose. We won't bother you again."

I was dizzy; it was hard to concentrate. His words swirled around in my head.

I tried to breathe normally. I needed to concentrate, to find a way out of this nightmare.

"Goodbye, Bella," he said in the same quiet, peaceful voice.

_Goodbye_, my eyes widened fractionally. That word echoed in my mind, taunting me. I turned my head to try to capture his eyes again only to face the too green foliage. The leaves gently swayed from the wind of his quick retreat.

I turned towards the direction of the path that leads deeper into the forest. My vision blurred and hot tears streaked down my face.

So this was it, huh?

Unbelievable pain ripped through my chest as I uttered that one word; the one, I hoped would fail to reach his ears. "Goodbye."


	2. Rude Awakenings

**I do not own Twilight. This is fan based property.**

**Well, Hello everybody I finally updated the first official chapter of the story. I apologize for the long wait but it was necessary since I am completely lazy in every way.**

Rude Awakenings

"_Bbrrriiiing…bbbrrrriiinnngg…"_ I jolted out of my bed in shock, twisting to reach my hand over and slam the offensive box that was causing such an annoying sound.

"Damn it." I moaned, staring at the time; it was 12:40. I rubbed my hand against my cheek and groaned. I had a splitting head ache. It felt like some clog dancers decided to practice and the performing stage was my head, and to top it off they weren't that good.

'Did I get drunk?' I tried to bring up last night's events but all that came up was a fast moving blur that put my head into more turmoil. 'I need some tylenol.' I meant to swing my legs over the bed and onto the floor but to my dismay my legs were entangled with the sheets and I nearly fell off the bed dragging my sheets and with me; the comforter was already on the floor.

Mmm…

I shrugged in defeat. I most likely kicked them off; I usually do that when I have bad dreams. What dream I had I'll never know. My brow crinkled in confusion, I can't remember my dream or the night before.

After I managed to pull my legs out of the sheets, I stumbled to the bathroom nearly crashing into the dresser on my way out. _Damn_. _I thought I got rid of this._

The tile floor felt cool on my feet and the shock from the temperature nearly helped me to awaken. Nearly. At least I think. I can make my way towards the sink without falling over my feet. I shook my head at the memory.

Ooh, No. Bad Bella, don't shake head. Head hurts majorly.

I rummaged through the cabinets searching for the Tylenol. _Aah, there it is_. I grasped the white bottle in my hand and unscrewed it only to find two pills left. Not even bothering to drink water I swallowed them and waited for the pain killers to reach my head.

While I was waiting for the medicine to take effect, I threw off my overly large shirt and stepped into the shower turning both knobs so I could find the perfect temperature. Grabbing the bar of soap and wash cloth so I could build a sufficient amount of lather, I came across a bracelet. Hesitantly I picked the band up like it was some strange animal that was prone to biting. The bracelet was plain just a regular gold band and a large blue stone in the middle, must be a fake, the stone was similar to a sapphire but it was definitely no jewel in the matter that it was too smooth. I frowned. Where have I seen this before?

Deciding to post pone a long hot relaxing rinse in the shower, I took a quick wash and ran the soap over my body and the important parts in a rushed manner. My dulling headache was pushed to the back of my mind with the bracelet in the forefront.

I dried off quickly with the bracelet still in hand and went into my room, turning the gold band in my fingers. The bracelet was warm but plain and heavy and the rock sat dull amidst its gold frame. It surely wasn't my bracelet; I hardly wore jewelry except for a few items that held sentimental value to me. I looked inside of the band to search for a name but what was stranger that caught my interest was the symbol, it looked like a hieroglyphic, which was imprinted behind the stone; a carving filled with ink of a strange looking bird and a crescent moon.

The moon.

I grabbed my head not in pain from the recent headache but to attempt to resurface my memories. I felt it; it was on the tip of my tongue. So close…

_"Rrrriiiinnnngggg…Rrrrrriiiiiinnnnggggg_." I nearly jumped out of my skin; I was so transfixed with the mystery bracelet that I wasn't even aware of my own surroundings. Automatically I reached to slam on the alarm clock to find it was actually my house phone. I turned in the opposite direction to reach for the cordless phone not that surprised to find the hospital's number on it. Hurriedly I picked it up and I instantly regretted it; the shouting that

I pulled the phone away from my ear and stared at the phone in disbelief. They have some nerve to call me on my vacation while Mr. Culpepper promised that this vacation would truly belong to me.

_"Isabella, I promised that you would have a week to yourself, didn't I?" _

_ I stared at the man with open disbelief and disapproval written on my face. I crossed my arms and barely refrained myself from rolling my eyes. The man was at least fifty years old and his memory was also unfortunately failing him, ironic really since he used to be one of the best neurosurgeon in the country._

_ "Yeah, you said that last time." _

_ He only smiled and folded his hands on his round belly but there was sharpness in his eyes that contradicted his supposed memory failure._

_ I raised my eyebrow cryptically at the man._

_ "After all these years, I have yet to see you go on a real vacation," he sighed and stood up from his leather chair and did a sort of waddle around the desk to come up to me; gently he put his hand on my shoulder, "Isabella take the week off-No in fact take two weeks off. No one else in this hospital, I have seen, is as dutiful and loyal to your career and patients as you. Trust me you deserve this."_

_ I stared into his pale eyes and saw the concern that was not voiced, in them. I hesitated in saying a smart reply but sometimes I couldn't even keep my mouth shut._

_ "So this means that I should at the least be expecting an emergency call from the hospital in less than two days." It was smart but I at least tried to gentle it with a smile. A small smile but a smile nonetheless. _

I sighed at the memory and told the secretary, I assumed, that I will be there as quick as I can; whether she heard it or not, I didn't really care.

In a rushed manner I threw some jeans and a t-shirt on, casual wear; maybe not the best to wear at a hospital but Goddamnit if it wasn't my week-off I wouldn't know what it

was.

()()()

So _many_ voices.

So _many_ thoughts.

Like a babbling brook with no end, the thoughts surrounding me came rushing forward with no pattern, no thought process, just a stream of emotions and thoughts unvoiced that welled up and overflowed. No these human minds are more of a rushing river, babbling brooks are more peaceful and soothing than this.

_Omg; he is so Hot!_

_ How long is this going to take because I need to go to my job soon and…_

_ Damn, I think I left the car unlocked…_

_I hope we can get this over with as soon as possible._

_ There are twice as many students here than last year; maybe we can kick some out…_

Sitting in a crowded room with so many conscious people can leave me with a headache, well as much as a headache a vampire can get. There really was no point in being here anymore. I mean after all the reliving of the high school life; things come to be repetitive and pointless. This must be my umpteenth high school orientation and you would have thought the board of directors would have come up with something a little more interesting and life inspiring. Instead "We're glad you all came here" and "Make it your goal to do your best in high school" and "Raise your GPAs because colleges acknowledge these things". _Really?_ Wow, Thank-you.

All this propaganda is all the same no matter what time line.

A man with a face that more lines etched in the dry skin than on a map came waddling up the steps to stand on the center fold of stage, commanding the attention of the attending sophomore class this year with his unusual tall stature and large frame. Everyone hushed finally seeing an adult in the room and their thoughts calmed a little and were mostly directed towards the man on stage.

I took this as my cue to completely shut off my senses, well at least tried. I could ignore the man's droning voice to the point that it was a distant murmur tickling at the back of my mind along with the rest of the trivial thoughts that occupied the space.

I still heard every word and yet I didn't. The man's lecture was stored into a file in my brain and I knew later if I wished to I could recite every word he said but right now I was bored.

My mind tends to wander dangerously when bored. My eyes searched through the drab auditorium for a distraction but unfortunately there was none of interest. The walls were bare and gray-very depressing- the stage was just some worn wooden floors with an also worn out podium. The students weren't even worth commenting on except for the fact for a small town they had managed to produce a very diverse high school. Different from what we usually had to deal with. From all the schools we went to that was in a small town there was a usual population of mostly Caucasian with the occasional different ethnicity here and there. In fact the last high school I attended was in… Forks…

I focused harder on the gray walls.

237…

238…

239...There are 239 cracks on the left wall and 361 on the one to the right and I'm pretty sure there are 278 on the ceiling…

_Edward! _Along with the mental shout, a bony rib made a quick jab to my ribs. I mocked winced and turned to glare at the imp that occupied the seat next to mine. Said imp was staring at me with a certain curious look in her amber eyes and her lip were pursued into a slight frown.

I raised my eyebrow at her.

She shook her head slightly and informed me, "The orientation is over."

I turned-caught off guard- and noticed the students filing out and my family was also filing out pretty much used to me spacing out by now. Making move to follow them, I stood up but the imp tugged on my elbow forcing me to turn and meet her eyes.

"Are you alright?" I knew she was concerned but I couldn't answer. I could never answer.

And she knew. Unlike the rest of my family Alice was more attuned to my emotions even though she didn't have the same power as Jasper and my own telepathist abilities, she was still the closest to me and would have the ability to discern my feelings.

My name resounded in my head quite loudly and also quite shrilly.

I stared down at the same golden eyes that I also owned and knew she was worried. Always worried. Alice wanted to help but didn't know how; I didn't even know. I nodded at my sister in confirmation and headed for the rest of my family, knowing that I was only adding up to the list of worries Alice had of me.

Throwing her a charming smile over my shoulder I teased her, "You should hurry up little monkey before we leave you."

Alice snorted, the sound was delicate and she threw a smile back although it didn't quite reach her amber eyes.

()()()

"C'mon,C'mon" I continued to beg at the red light that haven't changed colors probably for the better half hour. I was tempted to slam my head on the steering wheel of my car just before the lights switched. This made no sense for these long lights when there was hardly any traffic down this street.

When the light simultaneously turned green, I sped down the street without caution which was unusual for me and in an act of haste I almost crashed into a black car but fortunately for me they driven off the side of the road probably thinking that this was a stolen car either that or the driver was insane. Which I don't blame them; I was going way over the speed limit.

Making a few twists and turns and passing by a few close calls with the streetlight-my worst enemy- I was finally only a few blocks away from 2111 Exchange Street where Colombia Memorial Hospital resided.

_"Rrrriiiinnnngggg…Rrrrrriiiiiinnnnggggg_." I sighed; I really need to change my ring tone. Picking my cell phone up I answered with a sharp greeting. "_Yes."_

"Hello, Isabella-"

I cut off Mr. Culpepper before he even asked for my services. "I know. I'm only a few blocks down the hospital right now."

"Actually Isabella-"

"Now I'm in the driveway." I continued.

"No Isabella you don't seem to understand-"

"I'm looking for a parking space right now." I ignored him.

"Isabella." His tone of voice cut me short and I ceased reporting my actions.

"Yes?"

"Actually Isabella we do not need your services today. There is another doctor already on the job so you can continue your vacation. Alright?"

"But-"

"Goodbye, Isabella."  
"But I already found a sparking spot." I stared incredulously at the phone he hung up on me. Slowly I took a deep breath, releasing all my tension and slowly breathed out. Just breathe Bella. Just breathe.

Before I could even think about I slammed my head on the steering wheel causing my horn to blare within the parking cavern.


End file.
